


No Lessons are Ever Wasted

by Kitsune_Scribe



Category: Enchanted Forest Chronicles - Patricia Wrede
Genre: Collection: Purimgifts Day 2, Cooking Lessons, Fanart, Fanfiction, Gen, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 13:48:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29652270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitsune_Scribe/pseuds/Kitsune_Scribe
Summary: Cimorene searches for something more interesting than curtsies to learn.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 9
Collections: Purimgifts 2021





	No Lessons are Ever Wasted

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ShadowEtienne](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowEtienne/gifts).



A gentle breeze blew through the castle's kitchens and the castle chef looked up from her preparations with a sniff. "Dunstan! I thought I told you that I'd tell Sorcerer Carrick the next time I found you filching rolls out of my kitchen," she said to a seemingly empty corner. 

In her corner Cimorene was startled into dropping her invisibility with an _eep_.   
The chef paled upon seeing the castle's youngest princess instead of it's most annoying apprentice. "Apologies, Princess Cimorene, I didn't realize you had come down to visit the kitchens."

"I was mostly looking for somewhere to hide from my embroidery lessons," Cimorene said with a huff. "How did you know I was here? I was very careful about being quiet." 

"It's the wrong season for witch hazel. Your hair rinse gave you away."

Cimorene had never considered that the hair rinse her Etiquette Master insisted she use even as she refused to use most cosmetics might give her away. "I like the scent."

"It's perfectly nice," the chef agreed. "But it doesn't belong in my kitchen. I wouldn't worry about it over much. There aren't many who have a nose as good as mine. Now run along and find a new hiding place." 

"She hasn't found me yet. And now that you know I'm here I can ask you what you're making. That's an awful lot of cherries" Cimorene said as she looked at the bags of cherries piled around the kitchen. 

"Most of those are going to be preserves as soon as my assistants finish bringing them in. But I'm making a small batch of cherries jubilee for the King's lunch at the moment. He always has cherries jubilee as soon as the cherry harvest comes in."

"Teach me how to make it." Cimorene said in the firm manner that had gotten her fencing lessons started, and her magic and Latin lessons after that.

"It's messy. And quite below your station as a princess," the chef replied. 

"Let me borrow an apron then. And I will worry about my station later, for now I wish to learn how to cook."

The chef looked her up and down but she was wearing a sturdier dress than any of her sisters would dream of wearing, and if she wanted to stain her hands with cherry juice then it wasn't the chef's place to stop her. "Very well, princess, it's a simple enough dish to start with. Grab that apron over there and then come over and pull the pits out of these cherries," she said nodding her head towards an apron hanging behind Cimorene.

Cimorene carefully cut the pits out of the cherries, mangling the first few but getting the hang of things quickly and soon had a skillet full of cherries which the chef directed her to place on the stove.

"Now add this sugar and a bit of the rind of this lemon, and then it's juice," the chef said, handing Cimorene the ingredients and a knife. "Just the yellow bit, and then cut it in half and squeeze the halves over the skillet." 

Cimorene did so, and looked on in dismay as several seeds fell into the cherry and sugar mixture. 

"It helps to hold your other hand underneath to catch the seeds, but you can always pull them out with a spoon if you don't."

Cimorene accepted a spoon and carefully fished out the seeds. And then used it to stir the mixture together. 

"Very good. Now let it cook for a bit while we prepare the ice cream."

Cimorene's head lifted from where she had been concentrating in the bubbling mess. "Are we making ice cream?" she asked with a touch of excitement. 

"Not today, but we do make it sometimes at the palace." 

The chef allowed Cimorene to scoop the ice cream into the dishes she had laid out and pour the kirsch into the skillet after she had taken it from the stove.

"Now this bit is tricky and I don't wish to explain to your etiqute master or the Queen why you're missing your eyebrows, so grab a long match from that box over there and you can light the kirsch from a safe distance."

"Next time I want to do everything." Cimorene said, but she stood well back as the chef swirled the skillet until the flames died down and then handed it back to Cimorene to spoon over the ice cream.

If you show me you won't hurt yourself before then," the chef said calmly. "Now, do you wish to deliver this to his Majesty?"

"Absolutely not,. Don't mention I was here at all," Cimorene said firmly as she put the apron back on it's hook. "Thank you for the lesson, I will be back for another one tomorrow." Then she curtsied precisely as deeply as a young princess should curtsy to a teacher who was a commoner and turned and left. 


End file.
